Love Hurts
by AngelMoon Girl
Summary: Destiny promised Usagi and Mamoru a happily ever after, but the unforeseen trials of domesticity prove to be too much. One night, abuse escalates violently, and a wounded Usagi flees with their young daughter. She crosses paths with Seiya, but can he help her learn to trust in the power of love once more?
1. The Broken Home

Disclaimer: Sailor Moon never was and never will be mine, alas!

Summary: _It's frightening, how easy it is to let happily ever after fall to the wayside, until there are only remnants of a once beautiful relationship left._

_Despite what destiny promised Usagi and Mamoru, the trials and unforeseen costs of domestic life soon prove to be too much for the young couple. One particularly violent night, a wounded Usagi flees the abusive situation with their three-year-old daughter. An attempted hitchhike brings Seiya to her aid, but can she ever learn to trust in the power of love again?_

* * *

**IMPORTANT! READ THIS FIRST:** As most of you know, I'm a diehard Usagi/Mamoru fan. I don't actually ship Usagi/Seiya, but as a writer I like to experiment; to step out of my comfort zone once in a while. Getting into a character's head; discerning their motivations, desires, and fears- it helps me to improve. That said, this is not a pleasant story. Domestic abuse is no light matter. It can scar people for the rest of their lives, something you will see me explore with Usagi's character throughout the story.

I will also warn everyone right now, Mamoru is severely OOC.

I don't expect to get many readers, and I completely understand why. So don't feel bad if you start this and realize it's just not up your alley.

And please, no bashing. That's why I'm warning you NOW, because when I first started posting this story I got a lot of mixed reviews, and some were rather rude. I know what I'm doing, guys ;p

* * *

**Love Hurts**

Part 1: "The Broken Home"

* * *

The sound of breaking glass resonated throughout the small kitchen, accompanied by a tiny gasp that was quickly overshadowed by a terrible roar.

"Dammit, Usagi!"

The aforementioned woman flinched. It was a knife to the heart to hear her name spat out like a heinous swear. She longed for the days of 'Usako', but that was an affectionate moniker of the past.

"I'm sorry, I'm s-"

SLAP!

"Liar."

The twenty-one year old blonde winced, clutching her stinging cheek as she cowered in front of her towering husband. "Please, Mamo-chan-"

"I thought I told you to stop calling me that," Mamoru growled, moving to shake her arm roughly. "Or can you not get it through your thick head?"

He shoved her roughly from him and sent Usagi sprawling to the floor, into the seemingly thousands of shards glittering below. She cried out as they dug into her skin, wanting to seek safety but feeling paralyzed by her husband's fury-laden gaze.

"Useless," Mamoru spat. "Clumsy and useless, that's what you are. Why the hell did you break the vase? You knew it was my mother's. You _knew_ it was the only thing of hers I had left!"

"It was an accident, M-Ma... Mamoru," Usagi pleaded desperately, voice barely above a whisper as she trembled in fear. "I burned my hand on the stove and-and it surprised m-me... I d-didn't mean to jump back and hit the vase, honest to-"

"Shut up. Just shut up," he cut in with a hiss, clutching at his temple as if her very words pained him. The man raked a hand through his messy black locks. "I'm so goddamn tired of your excuses, _all the time_, that's all that ever comes out of your mouth- _'I didn't mean to'_. _'It's not my fault'_. Well I'm fucking sick of excuses! We've been at this nearly four years now; any normal wife would have- ugh. I... I need a drink. That mess better be gone by the time I get back, Usagi."

A last disparaging look over Usagi and the remains of his mother's vase, and Mamoru was out the door. It wasn't until Usagi heard the car pull out of the driveway that she could finally breathe again. Still shaking, the woman bearing odango pulled herself up and stumbled over to the sink. She shoved her arms under cold water, washing away the blood from her cuts before deciding to splash some liquid onto her face as well, for good measure. She hated her tears; they were a sign of weakness she could not afford. Usagi would gladly take scars any day over breaking down in front of Mamoru; at least _they_were easily hidden.

You could hide just about anything with the right amount of cover-up.

And lately, Usagi had become an expert on the application.

The girl sighed, mind drifting as she sponged away at her injured flesh. _Mamoru_. The man her future rested upon; the savior of roses in whose eyes laid the promise of happily ever after... according to destiny. What a bitch; what a liar. Had destiny foreseen the bills they couldn't pay? The rising mortgage? The expense of raising a child? The arguments that had started- so innocently at first- but had over time escalated into abuse, made worse by Mamoru's recent penchant for drinking away all his problems?

And the most worrying of all... Why couldn't she transform anymore? Why couldn't any of the Senshi?

_My friends..._ Usagi thought, with a jolt of sad longing. After ChibiUsa's birth three years ago- whereabouts her and Mamoru's problems started manifesting themselves- the Senshi wandered off down their own separate career paths. It was about this time that transforming had failed, but instead of seeing this as a warning, most of the girls welcomed the change. They took it be fate's permission to finally let loose and follow their dreams. Peace at last, they'd proclaimed.

Makoto had risen to top chef in Japan and was currently studying in France among the most well-known of food connoisseurs. It was her dream to one day open her own restaurant franchise. Minako on the other hand, had decided to finally make use of her dramatic flair. She was in America enjoying a life of relative stardom, and given her recent debut in the musical and acting worlds, the effervescent blonde had just about as much time for Japan as Ami did. The aforementioned blue-haired erudite was away in Germany, majoring in the medical field and halfway to fufilling her dream of becoming a pediatricien. Rei, the closest to Usagi, was also finding it hard to keep in contact. The duties of running the shrine, now that her Grampa had passed away, was a daily job. There were customers to attend to, prayers to be said, and always chores to finish.

Even Usagi was busy, deep into the role of motherhood.

A phone call here, an email there... it had been nearly a year since Usagi had seen any of them. It hurt; festered like the angry wounds upon her arm, this distance. Without the need for Sailor Senshi to protect the city, the five were free to live out their lives. All but Usagi, who felt herself suffocating under the burden following her supposed "destiny" had wrought. She may not have been out fighting youma, but she was fighting. Fighting to survive each day, one day at a time.

And her friends didn't know.

_And never will_, Usagi thought firmly, pulling out her now thoroughly numb arm and wrapping it in a towel. _They'd call me weak; a coward. Saves the world a million times over, but can't save her own skin..._ It was not just a matter of pride, but of safety as well. If Mamoru ever found out she had confided in her friends-

Usagi shivered. No. She had to protect ChibiUsa and herself from his wrath, at all costs. It didn't matter so much if he hurt her, but ChibiUsa... perhaps it was only sheer dumb luck with a side of miracle that he had never touched the three year old. But as Usagi knew from experience, luck was a flighty being. Just when one became too complacent, it made a disappearing act.

The former superheroine turned to face the scene of the wreckage. She pursed her lips at the umpteen shards of glass she had been ordered to clean up. A hopelessness settled over Usagi, and her figure seemed to deflate. This would take forever, to pick everything up. And it had been such a pretty vase, too, but repairing the understandably priceless belonging would be next to impossible.

How ironic, that these little pieces could also symbolize her life; their marriage. In the beginning it too had been beautiful: All they'd ever wanted and a love that had weathered it all.

_Love._ Usagi snorted. _What a fool's dream. Love **hurt**._

This was what love had come to; what their marriage had come to: a broken vase. In a broken home. And now Usagi set about trying futilely to pick up all the pieces.

oOo

A near hour later, after toiling away on her hands and knees while adding on to the crimson design splattering her skin, Usagi was done. She stretched her back, letting the stiff muscles pop satisfyingly. A glance out the dark window informed her it had grown late. Mamoru would be back soon.

She tried not to let fear enter her system again, however ineffective the attempt. A drunk Mamoru was the scariest of his seemingly multiple characters. _Do something; occupy your mind._ That always helped.

_ChibiUsa._

Usagi smiled at the thought of her daughter. Perhaps... not all love hurt. Maternal love- now that was a beautiful thing; an emotion far from dangerous. She could let herself become engrossed in that feeling and not fear rejection, pain, heartache. Sometimes it seemed ChibiUsa was the only thing keeping Usagi tethered to life; to sanity.

She crossed the threshold into the hall and tiptoed gently up the staircase. Already, the sign on the door straight above beckoned her.

_ChibiUsa_, it read in fading stencil. One of many gifts from the girls on the occasion of her birth.

Usagi vaulted the last stair quietly and reached out to push open the door. She winced at the creak, peeking in to make sure the noise hadn't interrupted the child's slumber. Delicately painted white bunnies traipsed happily across the pink walls, looking down on a lone crib in the center of the room. Nothing had changed since the proud parents first brought their newborn daughter home three years previous. Inching over to it, Usagi peered down and beamed in at sleeping ChibiUsa. Even unconscious, her ruby lips puckered like a small baby's and her fingers twitched around a ragged bunny. It was the only toy Mamoru had let her keep.

Usagi frowned. Her daughter was a growing girl; she needed entertainment and deserved even the basic luxury of a normal bed.

The girl was too big for the crib now, fitting only just barely, but that argument had been fought and lost long ago. In Mamoru's words, "Even a bed costs more than enough money than we can afford to lose". He neglected to mention the fact that he himself wasted dollar upon dollar on his recent bar-hopping habits. And Usagi had wisely decided not to bring it up.

"Oh my little angel," she sighed, stroking the child's cotton candy-colored crown. "Someday we'll leave this place; I promise."

_Really? Then why haven't you left yet?_ the annoying little voice Usagi supposed was her conscience asked, quite snidely.

_I can't!_ Usagi responded. _She needs food and shelter and money... I can't afford that without Mamoru! Being a housewife earns no pay..._

_Don't make excuses for yourself. That's not the only reason you stay. You still love him._

_I don't!_ Usagi yelled fiercely. _I... don't..._

But she couldn't lie, not to herself.

Despite all that had happened; all the abuse... she still loved Mamoru. Still saw the tuxedo-clad warrior who'd saved her too many times to count; the one who swore her undying love and gave her her daughter...

Oh, she loved him. She loved the man he had once been; the man she sometimes caught a glimpse of, on their rare good days.

But love was dangerous, because love hurt.

TBC


	2. Temptress, Tempest, and Trigger

**Love Hurts**

Part 2: "Temptress, Tempest, and Trigger"

* * *

The slam of a car door startled Usagi out of her reverie and she stiffened up, clutching the bars of the crib with white knuckles. Vaguely, she wondered how she could have missed the grating crunch of gravel that usually warned her of Mamoru's return ahead of time. But that was no matter now, because he was home, and the next thing the woman knew, the front door was ricocheting open.

"Usagi!" Mamoru's voice slurred impatiently. "Where 'rar you!"

Usagi automatically left ChibiUsa's room and came to the top of the stairs, trembling nervously. Her throat was dry and she had to lick her lips several times before speaking.

"Up... up here, Mamoru. I'm coming down now," the blonde called back hoarsely. She could see how his eyes flickered up to latch on to her descending form, and it was positively nauseating, the way those darkly azure orbs filled with sudden desire as she approached him. Usagi belatedly puzzled over how she could have ever wanted to drown in those nauseatingly glazed blue depths before his lips jumped frantically onto hers. A reluctant apathy settled over the former heroine as she realized what was happening. At least there would be no yelling or hitting tonight.

Mamoru reached down to grab her arms and push her up against the wall, still fighting feverishly for full control of her mouth. Usagi forced herself to respond appropriately; if she was even the slightest bit uneager it would only be harder on her. After all, the combination of his intimidatingly superior strength and dulled morals was dangerous. Usagi learned long ago the best option was always to succumb. She didn't enjoy being used as nothing more than a sex toy, but it was a mighty step above the demotion to punching bag.

When her intoxicated companion finally came up for air, breathing ragged, Usagi swallowed a heady urge to gag at the potent stench of alcohol assailing against her senses. Where was the smell of chocolate and spice she used to so love? Had it been that long, that she now associated the fetid malodor of beer and cheap whiskey shots with her husband?

Mamoru latched onto Usagi's wrist with a vice-like grip and tugged her in close. He whispered, "Our room. Now, my sweet little temptress."

It was probably lucky he wasn't able to see the grimace on Usagi's face at his god-awful, inebriation-induced nickname. Again she wished for the time when just a simple, sweet "Usako" made her heart flutter and knees weak.

"C'mon."

He tugged her onward and Usagi had little choice but to allow herself to be dragged up the stairs once more.

oOo

The blonde shivered, trying to procure warmth from the covers surrounding her bare body by pulling them closer. Even if it was early summer, the night was still chilly and the wide open window didn't help matters. She cast it a dirty glance before sighing, turning her attention to Mamoru and appraising his slack features. He seemed utterly unconscious, no doubt aided by the excessive amount of alcohol rushing through his system.

A particularly gusty zephyr blew in - damn, was it cold!

Trying to make as inconspicuous extra noise as possible, Usagi got out of bed. Her feet brushed the crack-ridden floor as she slid away, shivering. She stole her nightdress from the closet and threw it on, then padded over to the window and wrenched it down with an almighty creak. The Moon Princess winced as Mamoru twitched, then exhaled with relief when he slumbered on. After a few uneasy minutes, she deemed it safe enough to tiptoe back onto the mattress without rousing him further, and then it was time for sleep to claim her.

Or at least... hope desperately for the chance.

Once upon a time, falling into peaceful oblivion had been easy. Fun, even. But time is ironically fickle, rather like people. Insomnia had now become a constant battle for the former heroine - about the only fighting she got, outside of that with Mamoru. It even made her yearn for the days of energy-sucking youma and Earth-hating megalomaniacs. At least _they_ were predictable.

Usagi released a brooding sigh, mind drifting as it always tended to during these sleepless hours. This time it seized hold of her recent qualm as of late.

If the Senshi could no longer transform, what would happen to Crystal Tokyo? Surely it would come about soon, right? Or... would it even still exist? Pluto had always cautioned that the future was never certain. Were they still on track for that Utopian world? Had the inability to change into their alter egos somehow affected the course of time?

And what about Mamoru's sudden change in behavior? Was there any hope this angry, drunken shell of a man could transmogrify into the wise, kind-hearted paladin Usagi remembered meeting in the ruins of their beautiful city?

_So many questions, so little answers. If only Pluto were here_, Usagi thought wistfully. _But we haven't seen her since our wedding... __She had said then that the future was still projecting that of Crystal Tokyo. That was before everything began falling apart, though..._

All the pondering 'what if's began making the young woman's head pound, so she rolled over.

3:23 am, the old nightside clock blared blearily. Perhaps the few hours of slumber she'd acquired earlier would be enough to get her through the day. It was no use trying anymore, when sweet repose felt so far out of reach.

Heaving herself up, Usagi pulled herself from the bed once more and floated quiescently from the room. Hot chocolate seemed a delicious remedy, for now. If it could help ChibiUsa's restlessness at night, perchance it would prove valuable to her as well.

oOo

The day dredged by in soporific routine, as was per usual. Mamoru woke in a bad mood that was exacerbated by his obvious hangover. He yelled, had breakfast, yelled a bit more, then left for work. Usagi spent the morning and afternoon alternately caring for ChibiUsa and doing housework. There were no secret meetings at Hikawa Shrine; no dashing to far flung places to confront evil... this was her life now.

How could she have ever loathed being a Senshi? Wished for a normal life, when normal was now the very thing she hated most of all? A little danger once in a while would spice things up; give her a respite from such doldrums!

"Mama?" a small voice drifted up to Usagi from below. The aforementioned blonde extricated herself from distracted daydreaming to gaze solicitously down at her daughter.

"Can I go outside for a lil' bit?" ChibiUsa asked, screwing her face up into the picture of doe-eyed sweetness; a feat clearly inherited from Usagi. The elder of the two chuckled inwardly. She used to pull that trick on her own mother more times than she could remember. Oh, how things change!

"Until your father comes home, yes."

The three year old scampered eagerly from the kitchen and out into the hot summer afternoon. Usagi wistfully watched the child's carefree play from the window as she diced tomatoes. When had that innocence been lost to Usagi? When had she grown up?

ChibiUsa clambered onto her makeshift swing and began pumping voraciously, pink crown seeming to brush the blue heavens each time her body ascended. Usagi's heart swelled and for a brief moment, she felt a flare of hope erupt inside her chest.

One day, life would be better.

One day, they would both be free.

One day...

And then the spurt of optimism died away, almost as quickly as it had come. Usagi sighed, noticing a spattering of dark and foreboding clouds burgeoning against the horizon.

That day seemed so far away. How much more pain was she willing to suffer, all because she couldn't quelch that profoundly irrational love still fostered deep down inside? What would it have to come to; what storm would befall her family before common sense stirred her into action?

Usagi gritted her teeth and ground them against each other angrily. Everything would be so much easier, if she were genuinely as brave and courageous as everyone wanted her to be. Even as a leader she had been whimsical, impulsive... easily swayed... and cowardly. Always cowardly, as Rei had rubbed in her face many a time. But it was true.

She was a coward.

Usagi swallowed against the sudden painful lump in her throat, then tore her gaze off ChibiUsa and went back to the gentle ministrations of dinner preparation.

oOo

Mamoru propped his feet up on the armrest as he stretched out on the couch, nursing his umpteenth beer with a lethargic grin aimed toward the television.

"Usagi, when's dinner?" he demanded waspishly after a loud belch. The golden-haired beauty froze in the act of buttoning up their daughter's nightshirt. Her countenance flickered with a veritable cornucopia of expressions- shock, anger, fear and realization being the prominent few- before finally resting on wariness.

"We... already had dinner an hour ago, Mamoru," she chose her words carefully.

"Don't be stupid, of course we didn't," he snapped, sitting up to glare curtly at her. His face took on a mad gleam full of pugnacity. "You're trying to trick me again, aren't you? Trying to _starve_ me? Think I don't _know_? Eh? EH!"

Usagi flinched and ChibiUsa jumped at the sudden undulation of his voice. "M-Mamoru, I wouldn't lie to you. You just can't remember because- because... you're drunk."

There. She said it.

Mamoru's visage turned rapidly hostile and he threw down his beer bottle. The contents swirled across the wooden floor; a trail of muddy tears that Usagi knew she'd be forced to hide the stain of later...

"Dammit, Usagi. You're fucking lying to me, _again_, and you're fully aware of it too," he hissed dangerously, and Usagi began shaking her head back and forth in scared denial, lips pursed as she worried them gently with her teeth. Mamoru carded a hand through his messy locks, midnight eyes flashing in the blind parturition of fury.

"Get over here."

Usagi didn't move, now clutching a trembling and silently crying ChibiUsa to her chest protectively.

"I SAID GET OVER HERE!"

"No."

A distant, ominous rumble of thunder sounded - the storm that had been brewing that afternoon had now arrived in full force. ChibiUsa let out a choked sob that was muffled in Usagi's shirt as she pressed the girl's head into her. Her fright of storms was like that of her mother's, but Usagi spared no concern over the tempest. A greater one rivaled it - that of Mamoru's increasingly darkening face and ChibiUsa's shivering into her body.

"_What_ did you say?"

"I said, _no_."

Mamoru clenched and unclenched his fists, standing up quickly and taking the necessary strides over to his wife. Usagi seemingly shrank the closer he came, begging almost every deity she'd ever heard of for the ability to sink beneath the earth. With Mamoru's last booming steps, she forcibly pushed ChibiUsa behind her.

"You don't just say 'no' to me, Usagi," he ground out, grabbing her arms in a cruel grip. Usagi cried out. This was far from the gentle touch of just last night. This _hurt_.

"Let me go!" Usagi shouted, tears spilling over and down her cheeks as she kicked out at him. Vaguely, like a voice calling from the other end of a tunnel, Usagi registered ChibiUsa wailing at him to stop; let her go. Then her shoe connected with his knee and Mamoru gave an almighty roar.

"FUCK!"

He launched Usagi across the floor and she slid into the coffee table. Her head connected with the corner and stars erupted in front of the woman's eyes. Everything was spinning - Mamoru's terribly handsome and terribly frightening face was bearing down on her like a hungry wolf; it seemed to assail her from all sides. He raised a hand, as if to slap her, before another trill of thunder broke and ChibiUsa screamed. Mamoru whirled around, an insane and irrational glimmer coloring his wild eyes. This was no longer Mamoru, Usagi thought. This was not her husband; not ChibiUsa's father. A terrible monster born of alcohol had possessed her husband, slowly gaining control until the man she once loved was gone. The realization hit like a ton of bricks.

"ChibiUsa, be QUIET, you stupid child!"

This time, his hand whipped up to bash ChibiUsa full across the face. The young girl was knocked to the ground with the force of the blow, and as she fell something in Usagi snapped. All her previous insecurity was washed away almost instantly, as if a switch had been flipped inside her brain.

"_Don't touch her_!" she screamed, raising herself up even though her head throbbed violently in protest. Usagi scuttled across the floor with strength she didn't even know she'd retained, as adrenalin pumped a chaotic path through her veins. It was a drug, propelling her into movement; to action.

He hurt her.

He. Hurt. Her.

Her baby.

Usagi scooped howling ChibiUsa into her arms and dodged Mamoru's drunken swipe at them, scrambling around to place the coffee table in between her and the ebony-headed man. He paused, looking expressionlessly at the heavily-breathing Moon Princess. She wondered what he was thinking, and if this was the impasse that usually occurred when his haze wore off. Then, without another word, Mamoru backed out of the room, leaving the mother and child to their own company. Finally.

Usagi exhaled shakily, hugging ChibiUsa close to her body. Dumbly, the woman realized she was still crying. An empty chill settled in the pit of her stomach and she steeled herself bravely.

That altercation had been the last straw; the trigger to igniting her long-forgotten courage of a warrior. How dare he. How. _Dare_. He. His own child; his own flesh and blood!

She couldn't let anything of this sort happen again.

It was time to leave. They'd pack tonight and sneak away as Mamoru slept. She could not - _would not_ - subject ChibiUsa or herself to this abuse any longer.

Just as that sentiment entered the odangoed one's brain, so too did Mamoru into the room. And he was not alone.

In his grip was a small handgun, and he had it pointed straight at Usagi. The mad shine in his eyes was still just as bright as before.

TBC


	3. Jumping the Gun

**Love Hurts**

Part 3: "Jumping the Gun"

* * *

Usagi's heart seemed to fall plumb through her chest and land somewhere around her feet. Her breathing quickened, but every gulp could not bring enough air. She felt numb. She was hyperventilating. In denial.

This could not be happening.

Mamoru, her husband, could _not_ be pointing a gun at her. At her daughter, frozen as her mother was and still in the former heroine's arms.

It had to be a dream.

_Wake up, wake up, wake up. It'll all be over if you just open your eyes._

But her eyes - those intense azure depths that could forecast a furious storm or melt the coldest ice - were wide open.

The click of Mamoru cocking the weapon stirred the blonde into action; Senshi instincts kicked in and the twenty-one year old felt feeling return to her legs. They began shifting backward almost of their own accord - one small, subtle step at a time. Her eyes never left Mamoru's as he opened his mouth and began to perorate in a slur.

"I've had enough, Usagi. Enough of your damn lies and uselessness. You're weak. You're a nothing. And now you're trying to kill me. _Starve _me." His lips twitched into an insane and feral grin as Usagi continued lengthening the distance between them. Her whole body was tensed up; her senses acute. She was ready for flight at the slightest twitch of Mamoru's finger upon the trigger. The ebony-headed man lowered his voice until it was just a soft, caressing whisper.

"But you're too late. I'm about to kill you first."

"Mamoru, stop it, please," Usagi begged, afraid to make too haste a movement and end both her and her daughter's life. In this drunken state, there was no telling what would provoke Mamoru's hand. "Think about what you are doing!"

"I don't need to think; I've had enough of your deceit!" Mamoru snapped in a shout, waving the gun at her warningly.

"You might kill ChibiUsa!" Usagi pleaded loudly, hoping that in drawing attention to their daughter's presence, he would cease the threatening. Surely the man had _some_ cogency left? Some dreg of human decency? He wouldn't dare to fire at risk of hitting his own child...?

"I don't care," Mamoru replied monotonously, narrowing his eyes. "She's just like you. A nuisance and a waste of money."

"Waste of... _money_? Mamoru, SHE'S YOUR DAUGHTER!" Usagi screamed, barely believing her own ears. She clenched her fingers tighter into the folds of ChibiUsa's pink nightshirt. It was terrifying how far gone her husband was. She hardly recognized him anymore. He looked like a deranged psychopath; a distorted reflection of the Adonis she once caved at the knees for.

"I have no daughter; no family. At least I won't anymore," Mamoru gasped feverishly, and with that he slammed down on the trigger.

Usagi launched herself behind the couch, shielding ChibiUsa's body with her own. The child was screaming; the noise of the bullet's ignition was defeaning; the crash of the bullet whizzing through the glass porch door and simultaneously shattering it was piercing. With din exploding all around them, Usagi wasted no time in taking advantage of Mamoru's surprise - clearly, he hadn't been expecting her to do anything but stand there, waiting for death.

What a fool.

The woman streaked to the door leading into the hallway and ran as hard as her legs could carry her over to the staircase. Another bullet streamed past, burrowing deep into the wood of the banister.

"GET THE FUCK BACK HERE, USAGI!" Mamoru roared in a booming voice. Usagi ignored him entirely, clambering up the stairs with her small, shaking burden hugged secure against her chest. She cursed her clumsiness as her feet stumbled over each other and she tripped up the last steps. ChibiUsa's door straight ahead was like a beacon amidst this darkly dangerous whirlwind of a night; it sang of salvation, of sanctuary, and the odangoed one wrenched it open, literally staggering into the room.

BANG!

A severe pain hit Usagi right in the arm and she screamed aloud as waves of nausea and agony coursed through her body. The bullet had found its mark.

Unsuspecting, the Moon Princess dropped ChibiUsa and the girl tumbled to the floor of her bedroom. Usagi didn't hesitate, though - she turned and slammed the bedroom door shut, but not before catching sight of Mamoru raising the handgun once more from the bottom of the stairs, his countenance livid.

There was a fourth fire, but the bullet didn't make it through the solid oak. It must have embedded itself into the front. Another resounding shot, and still no success. Usagi meanwhile had twisted the lock into place, but she knew that had only bought her a few precious moments. The key was easy to acquire.

No, she needed something heavy; something equally as... impenetrable. Usagi's eyes flickered over to the crib, frowning. A dresser would be preferable, but this was the biggest piece of furniture in the room.

In seconds, Usagi had strode over and shoved the crib across the floor, whimpering as the action sent a blaze of white hot flames down her injured arm. _Don't think about it, don't think about it!_ She thrust the bed up against the door just as pounding footsteps began to echo upward. Mamoru's fulminating fell on deaf ears, however - Usagi was already scanning the room again. Plans were flashing through her brain in mimicry of the fusillade of lightning currently ripping across the heavens, their contents being weighed and measured within a matter of seconds.

She had to get out.

Now.

The window!

Usagi dashed over to the look-out where beneath ChibiUsa was crouched and pressed up against the wall, crying.

"Out of the way, ChibiUsa," she ordered with an inflection of gentleness, but the blonde could not suppress fear at just how pained and little her voice sounded. She had to be strong, for ChibiUsa!

The child scampered away dutifully, her wailing burgeoning as a powerful gunshot from just outside sent shockwaves through the house. The door shivered on its hinges. Usagi threw open the window and reached up to undo the hooks keeping the screen in. She knew they were a safety precaution, built to last, but what an unnecessary obstacle! The twenty-one year old finally managed to tear the damn thing out, and after haphazardly tossing the screen away, she stuck her golden crown out the window and looked down.

Her heart thrummed full force somewhere in the vicinity of her throat.

_Be brave, be brave, be brave, Usagi!_

It was a drop of about thirty feet. Such heights might have seemed risable when morphed into a Senshi with superpowers, but Usagi was woefully mortal, her magic seemingly run dry, and the perilous fall petrified her.

Could she do this?

"USAGI, OPEN THIS DOOR OR I SWEAR I WILL FIND SOME WAY TO BREAK IT DOWN!"

_As if he wasn't already trying to do that_, Usagi inwardly scoffed. She was surprised it had even held this long.

The gun rang out once more and Usagi started, reluctant realization overtaking her. She had to jump. It was the only way to leave - to escape - without dying.

_Though the fall might just succeed where Mamoru failed_, her brain supplied, in that so very vexingly sarcastic way it tended to during life or death situations such as these.

"ChibiUsa, come here," Usagi commanded, tone breeching no permission for disobedience. ChibiUsa complied, rushing over to her mother and clinging to the woman. The distress on her features was almost palpable.

"Mama, I'm scared!" the girl whined through a flood of tears.

"Shh, it'll be okay. We're leaving," Usagi reassured, climbing out onto the sill. "Get in my arms."

ChibiUsa pulled herself up into her mother's arms with Usagi's help, and the blonde tightened her hold around the child. The three year old moaned as Usagi shifted, so that they were facing the forest that grew wild just beyond the backyard. The sky was pitch black and only a dim crescent moon provided light over the grounds, its comforting presence mostly obscured by mighty gray clouds towering to the west. Thunder rumbled.

"Mama, Mama, I don't wanna! It's scary!"

"It'll be okay," Usagi repeated, trying to believe her own words. She took a deep breath, increased her vice-grip on ChibiUsa, then jumped to freedom.

TBC


	4. Spirit of a Fighter, Part 1

**Love Hurts**

Part 4: "Spirit of a Fighter, Part 1"

* * *

She tried to hold it back. She truly did, for ChibiUsa's sake.

Futile, really.

The scream still found its way off Usagi's lips as solid ground rushed up at dizzying speed to meet the two. The air, though warm with summer's embrace, felt uncomfortably cold to the blonde. It ripped viciously through her odango and stung her shoulder wound. Yet despite the overwhelming pain, Usagi was able to pull ChibiUsa tighter to her body as they descended. Nothing mattered but keeping her little girl safe.

The impact wasn't as terrible as the fall had been. Usagi was even able to fight back the new jarring sensation to her legs in her relief to feel earth once more, but she could not afford to enjoy it. The sound of a door smashing open from above, unable to protect them any longer, stirred Usagi into action. She stumbled up, gazing around for one wild moment before her periwinkle eyes alighted upon the dark, sprawling forest behind their house.

Yes. Sanctuary.

"USAAAAGI!" Mamoru's angry baritone roared, but his voice grew distant as the former superheroine dashed with renewed haste toward freedom. If only they could reach the forest's edge before he spotted them... it was so close!

Another gunshot, followed by the earsplitting screech of a bullet racing toward its mark. Usagi didn't have to look back to know it was heading straight for her. Without thought, she flung her body into the brush and rolled to the side. The bullet that fired to kill missed by mere inches. The woman couldn't have been more relieved, and yet more terrified, than she was in that moment. A second too late and ChibiUsa would have been motherless - no, worse... she would be back with her abusive, homicidal son of a bitch for a father.

But not now. No, they would be safe - of that, Usagi was almost positive. Mamoru would have no hope of finding the two wayfarers now, under cover of treetop and night. And she didn't intend to give him an opportunity to catch up.

Scrambling off the debris-laden floor and shifting ChibiUsa to underneath her good arm, Usagi ran. She ran so far that time seemed to melt away into oblivion; the only proof that it was passing was the slow and silent dance of the moon. Usagi had no clue how long she fled for, only that ChibiUsa stopped crying and fell asleep when they were perhaps two miles in. Her brain had gone mercifully numb; the adrenaline and pumping of her legs were what pushed Usagi on. She did not even begin to think until a wave of utter fatigue drove the woman to her knees.

That was when it all came back.

Light ChibiUsa suddenly felt like a fifty pound weight. With shuddering arms, Usagi lay her gently onto the mossy ground and leaned her own weak body against a tree, gasping for air. It was a lucky fluke of fate that they somehow succeeded in dodging what had seemed to be a nasty incoming downpour. Usagi supposed, gratefully, that in all her sprinting she'd managed to veer off the path of the storm. For now, she simply relished in the cool bark and slight zephyr, clutching at her throbbing arm while trying to ignore the stitch in her side. The area just under her shoulder was hot and sticky, as both fresh and congealed blood dirtied the fabric of her short-sleeved shirt. It probably needed medical attention.

_Well duh, Usagi_, the more alert half of her brain snorted in sarcasm.

Another wave of agony pulsed, worse than before. Without the drug of fear racing through her veins, everything seemed so animated... so real. So very, very frighteningly real. Usagi could hardly believe what she'd done; the position she'd just thrust herself and her three year old baby of a daughter into.

A tiny whine escaped Usagi, and she wasn't sure whether it was borne of self-misery or physical discomfort. The sound echoed pitifully through the copse, a cowardly and disgraceful little noise even to her own ears, and the blonde scolded herself.

_You can't be weak right now, Usagi. ChibiUsa needs you to be strong. You got her into this mess and now you're going to get_ _her out of it._

But how?

Where could they go?

_We'll... check into a hotel somewhere!_ her brain supplied.

_With what money?_

_True._

Usagi sighed. Obviously they couldn't live the rest of their lives in the woods, on the run. Sticking around Mamoru's, well, why not just put the barrel to her head right now. Of her friends, Rei was the closest, but the temple was definitely not a viable option either. What was she supposed to say? 'I'm running from my rose-wielding, tuxedo-clad protector of a husband, who by the way has developed a mania for drinking and threatening his family with a deadly firearm?' Usagi blushed furiously. The explanation resounded contrite and embarrassing in her mind. It raised too many questions that the girl just did not want to answer... or perhaps admit to herself?

Usagi bit her lip. It stressed her, the lack of a solution to this grim predicament. She could only really focus on the pressing issues of here and now - like how the hell she was going to take care of her daughter with a bullet lodged in her arm, or what they would eat in the morning, or when they might hit civilization. Those, she could handle.

The blonde looked to her other shoulder, the one devoid of blood. She grasped the sleeve gingerly, and ignoring the sharp pain the movement caused her bad arm, ripped it off. With nimble, practiced housewife fingers, Usagi then proceeded to tear the fabric into strips for a makeshift bandage. It took a while to tie around her upper arm, being only one person, but eventually she had it secured.

Now, the food problem. That would be a little harder to solve, but at least there were options, even if the prospect of carrying them out seemed repulsive to the kind, law-abiding young woman.

Desperate times called for desperate measures, a quote Usagi had learned to live by as a Senshi. Though not fond of sacrifice, Usagi knew she had to do what was needed so ChibiUsa would not go hungry.

Even if it meant breaking into a few stores along the way.

Usagi shuddered. The words sounded so terrible, spoken aloud in her mind like that. She was not a criminal - eons from it, more like - but without money, this was the road she must walk. Ratting out Mamoru, seeking refuge with Rei... they were simply out of the question, and to be honest, Usagi was wary of confrontation; of her dark secret coming out. But oh, did she loathe the idea of stealing.

Utterly disgusted with herself, Usagi lay down on her back, with her uninjured arm covering her eyes. Before drifting into the blissful world of dreams - where she could still be warm in her own bed, cuddled against the chest of the man she once used to blindly love - Usagi sent up a prayer to heaven for courage; courage for tomorrow to face down the unknown.

TBC


	5. Spirit of a Fighter, Part 2

Disclaimer: Sailor Moon isn't mine.

A/N: I know, I know... over a year, and _finally_, this! Life's been major busy, and I plead writer's block on this story. Seiya and Usagi just isn't my thing, but I'm going to try my best to make their pairing realistic and romantic. For all who end up having stuck with me this long, my gratitude: **Princess Sailor Garnet 19, aldoraspritelette, Glory Nizenea, Fangirl44, serenityrain2233, ChibiLady, raven-the-dark-princess, Bronze Wolf, burnedon, emi-87, Dia-chan87, LilBlackTiger21, Luchiia, Sailor Moon Has Balls, Serandi82, dainlord,** and **Mandy Shadow. **Thank you for your reviews!

**Love Hurts**

Part 5: "Spirit of a Fighter, Part 2"

* * *

Usagi woke up to the sound of poignant crying, for a moment certain that it was her daughter waking up her and Mamoru after a nightmare. She was wrong on one count and right on another- it was indeed young ChibiUsa, but the blonde and her pink headed offspring were far from the comforts of their own beds... very far.

"Mama, Mama, wake up... where are we?" the three year old was sobbing, in the process of shaking her dorsicumbent mother. Usagi grunted as she opened her eyes, hissing in pain when the hysterical child accidentally jarred her arm. Ouch, bullet still firmly lodged, it seemed. She really would need medical attention, but that necessity came second. First, she and ChibiUsa would need food, safety, and more shelter than a canopy of leaves could provide. It just sucked that events had spiralled so out of control before Usagi could do any proper planning and packing. A little money and some blankets would have been preferable.

With a groan, the woman who once blasted youma for a living sat up. She grimaced as scattered branches and twigs crackled beneath her, irritated at having been shifted. The ground was cold, and slightly damp with morning dew. ChibiUsa was immediately in maul-Mama-mode, sticking herself to Usagi like a second skin, or a desperate leech.

"Where's Papa? Mama, is he still shootin' at us? Why's we still in the woods? We go'in home soon?" The volley of questions were many, but answers few. Usagi just pursed her lips and shook her head.

"Not now, sweetheart."

ChibiUsa looked rather put-out, but she was content to just be embraced by the elder. To her puerile mind, the world as she knew it had just crumpled into oblivion; she and her mother were just floundering wayfarers in a strange, inscrutable place that made no logical sense. Papa was suddenly an enemy; a monster to be feared? Mama was anxious, hurt, and tight-lipped? Usagi would have been proud; even lauded the assessment- it wasn't too far off the mark of what she was thinking. How had all she'd ever known been dashed so quickly? Her outlook had very rapidly become thin, stressed, and dark. Little mattered much anymore except that she had to hide her and ChibiUsa away from the horror home had become, and somewhere that included victuals.

Usagi wrenched herself off the grass, extending a hand to aid the three year old up as well. ChibiUsa whimpered and lifted her arms up, begging to be cuddled. Usagi sighed, bending over and catching her namesake under the armpits.

_Oh, damn._

The young mother had forgotten about her injury. Now, with pain immobilizing the whole right side of her body where the bullet inhabited, Usagi dropped ChibiUsa a second time. Memories of a similar incident from twelve hours ago, when she'd received Mamoru's parting gift, haunted Usagi's mind. She forcibly shoved them away into the dregs of her brain, then looked to the bloody makeshift bandage below her shoulder. ChibiUsa did too.

"Mama... you're hurted!" the pink head exclaimed, teetering on a wail.

"It's not like it looks," Usagi hissed, gingerly touching the inflamed area. A wave of nausea battled to ensnare her. "I... can't hold you just now, ChibiUsa. You're old enough to walk on your own." She tried very, very hard not to reveal how much agony she was exactly in. Unfortunately, ChibiUsa was perceptive enough to see through this prevarication.

"Does it feel really bad?" she asked in a near whisper.

Usagi stared at her before answering. ChibiUsa's incarnadine orbs were bright, most likely with tears.

"It does hurt Mama a little, yes, ChibiUsa. But don't concern yourself with me; I'll get a _big _band aid for it in town and that'll make my boo-boo all better," Usagi soothed, patting ChibiUsa on the head. "Hey, do you wanna play a game? Let's do 'I Spy' while we walk, so it'll make the time go by _really_ fast, OK?"

_And help keep my mind off the pain..._

"Kay," ChibiUsa responded uncertainly, still gracing her mother with a strange expression- sympathy, maybe?

"Now hold tight to my hand. I spy... a little blue bird!"

ChibiUsa laughed, fears momentarily driven away by this new distraction. "Oh! I know, Mama! It's in that big tree right there, on the tall branch!"

"Good job," Usagi praised, nodding and cringing at the same time. Her legs protested as she flexed them, aching fit to burst after last night's run. Still, she pressed on, hoping to walk until ChibiUsa tired. They'd have to reach _some_ form of civilization by nightfall... right? "Your turn."

oOo

Eleven breaks, insufferable whining tenures, and a lot of panting later, the pair's efforts won out. Rather accidentally, Usagi had stumbled upon a deserted road following a bathroom stop. Now, with afternoon coming to a slightly chilly close, she was intent on getting her and ChibiUsa to warm shelter. The blonde still feared exposure- Mamoru may have sent out a search party by now. Or, he was still scarfing beer down at the house, preferring to keep the incident quiet. After all, there were many unanswered questions...

All Usagi did know was that she sure as hell was not going back without a fight. She may have been too proud to tell the Senshi, but policemen were another matter. The sooner Mamoru was out of the picture and behind bars like he belonged, the sooner she and her daughter could get on with their life.

"Mama," ChibiUsa sobbed, tugging on Usagi's shirt. "Mama, I'm so hungry!"

"I know, honey. But look! A road! You might not have to wait very long anymore," Usagi told the child gently, inwardly furious at herself for not being able to provide nourishment. She tried not to delve into 'What if's and 'If only's. That was a dangerous path to mentally travel, because whiling away did ChibiUsa nothing. It was time for drastic measures.

All her life, Usagi had frowned upon hitchhiking. Her mother had spent countless yelling sessions warning the blonde about hitchhiking horror stories, ever since that one time in seventh grade. It had been a rainy night, and a kindly old truck driver had offered thirteen year old Usagi a ride. Ever the cheerful and friendly Odango Atama (Usagi winced at the familiar nickname), she'd accepted... and got one hell of an earful from Mama the following morning. After umpteen tales of rape and murder, the girl had acquiesced, vowing to never hitchhike again.

That was one of many promises Usagi would be breaking in the course of a day.

Not to mention the major one: "Til death do you part..."

Did it count if her husband had suddenly become a drunk, gun-wielding maniac? She resisted the urge to snicker.

And not to mention the fact that from this day forward, she... she, _Sailor Moon_, of all people!... might become a criminal. Just the word sent shivers down the twenty one year old's spine. Her reverie was fast broken by an impossible but wonderful sound.

_Engine!_

"ChibiUsa, step behind me, please."

The approaching car's headlights gleamed bright against the fading sunlight, seeming to burgeon larger as the vehicle came closer. Taking a deep breath, Usagi stuck out her thumb and prayed for salvation... and that she was gesturing in the right direction. How the heck should _she _know where the city was? Usagi may have been an adult now, but that maturation hadn't come with a map!

The car- a beautiful sleek black Porsche- came to a grinding and screeching halt. Usagi exhaled, smiling indulgently toward the tinted window in gratitude and ignoring the disheveled state of her reflection. She plucked ChibiUsa's hand, grasping very tightly, and moved around to the other side.

Usagi opened the passenger door, preparing to say thanks, but her jaw slid open wordlessly instead. Shock coursed through her veins at another teasing impossibility. This couldn't be real; it was just a ghost... a specter...

"O-Odango!?"

It couldn't really be...

"_Seiya_!?"

* * *

A/N: More who review, faster I'll be motivated to update!

**AngelMoon Girl**


	6. Unearthing the Past

Disclaimer: Sailor Moon isn't mine.

A/N: Alright, side-note time! I will be referring to Seiya in the masculine sense ("he" "him" "his"), due to his decision to remain in male form. It's just easier that way ^^ Thank you to **xo Usako ox, Ashgeliton, serenityrain2233, Fangirl44, Bronze Wolf, Dia-chan87, Chibi Lady, HikariRedPearl, IPityYou, Immortal Sailor Cosmos, Aeden Hale, Raven Haired Light, noodlegirl, debora diskey, ryuuzan, AelitaGal129, Chicwa88, Meyoukey,** and **Reiajade.**

Okay, and I just wanted to clarify something that is still coming up in reviews once in a while: Mamoru is OOC. I _know _he would never hurt Usagi, and I _know_ he would never resort to alcoholism, and I _know _he would never go at Usagi with a gun. Ever. But this is an AU; it does not occur in the canon world! I myself am a HUGE UxM fan, so this fic was a difficult undertaking. I felt like something really, really dramatic had to occur that would drive Usagi into another man's arms (Seiya), simply because she loved Mamoru _so _much. In fact, you will see that her love never fully dies throughout the fic, even though their relationship ended so tragically. You can never really let go of that first one, you know? Usagi will forever be scarred, but Seiya will help her recover. You'll see ;D

**Love Hurts**

Part 6: "Unearthing the Past"

* * *

For a few seconds of utter shock, Usagi just stood there, staring at the individual long since buried in her past. Seiya seemed to be having the same problem as she, for when his next query came out, it was in a croak.

"Odango, is it... is it really you?"

"I should be asking you the same question," Usagi joked, feeling as if she'd just been submerged in warm liquid from the inside out... _We're safe! _"I didn't know you were back!"

"And you weren't supposed to; not yet," Seiya answered grudgingly, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. "The girls were going to keep it a secret and unveil my presence at the party, but, well... surprise!"

Usagi giggled, and Seiya started when a little voice from beyond his line of vision asked shyly, "Who's that, Mama?"

"An old friend of mine," the blonde replied affectionately, but Seiya barely heard her- he was still reeling from the revelation that Usagi was a mother. Somehow, he managed to break through the fog to offer,

"Well, it's no use chatting under such a hot sun. And I do believe you were... er... hitchhiking? Jump in."

"Thank you," the woman who'd once been the unrequited love of his life said gratefully. She bent forward and grasped up her child, hiding a wince before setting the girl into the backseat of the black Porsche. Usagi praised her good foresight for having applied a new 'bandage' to the bullet wound on her shoulder only ten minutes before, so luckily blood hadn't started leaking through yet. "Buckle up, ChibiUsa." Seiya took this moment to glance back and fully appraise the offspring of... was it Chiba Usagi, now? He rather missed the cute Tsukino surname; no longer could he joke about her being the "Rabbit of the Moon" and how fitting the title was... Seiya sighed, very softly, as Usagi nuzzled noses with ChibiUsa (he wondered if that was really her name; it sounded so silly... probably short for Usagi, the Starlight surmised). The child really was adorable, and the picture of her mother... in fact, Seiya took perverse satisfaction in the fact that little of her father seemed to have been passed down through the genes.

The moment the thought entered his head, the man grimaced, wishing he could take it back. _Usagi has a family now. Pull it together, Kou! You can't go moping about through life pining for what will never be yours... even if it hurts to let go; even if dreams of her effervescent, smiling face still plague your dreams at night..._

Seiya was yanked from reverie by the slamming of the passenger side door, Usagi now beside him and fidgeting awkwardly.

"So where exactly were you heading?" the Starlight inquired, confused by his companion's disheveled state and paranoid demeanor. Every few seconds, her cerulean eyes sought out ChibiUsa or the road, as if... afraid. And for some reason, she was continuously dabbing at her shoulder. Seiya craned his neck, hoping to see what she was plucking at, but the Odango parried his movements with shifting of her own.

"I, um, I... I don't really care. Somewhere with food, I guess."

The answer only served to obfuscate Seiya more than ever, but he decided to drop the matter. Instead, the ebony-haired man cleared his throat, revving up the engine and pulling forward. "Would you like to stop by my place?"

"You're living here?" Usagi questioned suddenly, taken aback. "For how long?"

"It's indeterminate, I guess. Things on Kinmoku have been... rough, to say the least. And I've missed earth quite a bit since we left."

"But what about Princess Kakyuu?"

"Oh, we're still on good terms. I have not lost my loyalty for the Princess, but she understands my restlessness." Seiya looked to Usagi with shamed confession in his features. "It's one of my... er... more frustrating flaws. But here on earth... I don't know, I just feel like I've found my place. I belong here. The Princess realized that, and she released me from service."

"You're not a Sailor Senshi anymore?" Usagi gasped, feeling a small horror in the pit of her stomach at the thought of having to relinquish one's powers in order to be happy. But then again, maybe it just hit too close to home. Her powers had all but run dry, it seemed. Even the Silver Crystal looked dull; unused. True love had become a stranger, and Usagi grimly considered that the implications of this fact were affecting her powers.

"Of course I am," Seiya rolled his eyes. "Princess Kakyuu is not _that _cruel! I pledged her my life should she ever need my aid, but with the knowledge that I will no longer be around to constantly guard her. My only sorrow is that this decision has driven a wedge between the other Starlights and I."

There was silence for a full minute, and Seiya was nonplussed to see Usagi giving him a very sad look. He had forgotten just how altruistic and empathetic this girl- no, _woman_- could be... it made his heart ache unpleasantly at what could have been.

"That must have been very difficult for you, Seiya. So are you, erm, remaining in this form?" Usagi blushed fiercely as she gestured to his obviously masculine body.

"I've come to prefer it," was all Seiya had to say on that subject, feeling rather uncomfortable at the direction in which Usagi was staring. Grasping for a new and less obtrusive topic, he decided to tease, "Odango, every time I see you, there always seems to be a mysterious child in tow. I was rather surprised that this time, it was your own. When I talked to the Inners, they mentioned you'd gotten married, but not that..."

"I was a mother?" Usagi chuckled. "These last three years have been... tough... but I cherish every day and every moment with ChibiUsa. She's my pride and joy." _And oftentimes the only tether to life I have... my Light in the dark..._

"So her name is ChibiUsa?"

"Technically it's Usagi, but to avoid a mix-up, yes."

"I thought as much."

Easy quiescence settled between the pair of old friends following this conversation. Seiya thought it would be polite to ask about Mamoru, but his mouth just wouldn't cooperate so he let all chatter die. Instead, the Starlight watched in his rear view mirror as ChibiUsa dozed off to the gentle, vibrating hum of his car. Usagi became rather fascinated in the passing scenery, eyes drooping dangerously as sleep threatened to beckon her as well. It was only when the memory of a passing comment struck her that she returned to full awareness.

"Seiya... you said the girls were throwing a party? What party?"

Seiya gaped at his blonde comrade. "You mean you didn't know? When Rei-san heard I was coming back to earth, she got in contact with the other Inners, saying it was the perfect time for a reunion. But it was only a couple days ago; maybe she was going to call you today?"

Usagi muddled over this, frowning. If Rei was going to attempt to call her today, she would be sorely disappointed. Then cold dread hit the blonde- what if Mamoru was drunk and spilled details of last night to her priestess friend? None of the girls knew of the abuse Usagi suffered under her own roof, and she intended to keep it that way. But with everyone home again, and she mysteriously absent, secrecy had suddenly become that much harder.

The blonde gulped, gripping her shoulder tightly and ignoring the strange, concerned looks Seiya kept sending her. _They can't know..._

* * *

A/N: Reviews are SO appreciated, and they motivate me to update faster!

**AngelMoon Girl**


End file.
